In the field of orthopaedics, it is often necessary to use a length gauge to either measure the overall length of a device or to measure the length of a portion of the device, such as the length of screw threads. Typically, bone screws or pins or the like are measured by a longitudinal or straight scale such that the elongated device to be measured is positioned against or alongside such a straight scale and compared thereto to determine a length dimension.
An example of such a straight gauge for measuring orthopaedic screws is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,230,628 to James Hite.